Printing mechanism



Oct. 8, 1935. E. J. RABENDA I 2,016,684

PRINTING MECHANI SM Filed March 29, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 v ATTORNEY E.J. RABENDA PRINTING MECHANISM Filed March- 29, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 AMOUNT DOLLARA 6T5 mats G7 :9

PRINT MAGNE 75 N o. NEWYORK |9 BANK O F NEW YORK Pau to the order of 5 ajIINZgNTgR. Y

' ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 8, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PRINTINGMECHANISM York Application March 29, 1934, Serial No. 717,934

6 Claims. (Cl. 10193) This invention relates to accounting machines andmore particularly to the mechanism for controlling the printing devicesof such machines. The invention is particularly directed to improvementsin the printing control mechanism of a machine such as illustrated anddescribed in Patent No. 1,762,145, to Daly and Page, issued June 10,1930. Such machines are frequently used to prepare checks or drafts inaccordance with data perforated on record cards. The record cards areusually provided with a field or fields comprising a predeterminednumber of columns in which entries are made and each column is providedwith a perforation. If the amount punched in any field has fewer placesthan the capacity of the field, the remaining columns are perforatedwith zeros. In ordinary tabulating practice these zeros are not printedon the record sheets. When preparing checks or drafts, however, it isdesirable to effect the printing of some kind of symbol to the left ofthe highest significant figure printed to prevent raising or altering ofthe printed amount. The printing of these symbols is controlledaccording to the present invention through the zero perforations in therecord card. These perforations are analyzed to determine the locationof the highest significant order digit and a settable mechanism isconditioned thereby. During the actual printing operation, this settablemechanism will interrupt the printing type bars to present the selectedsymbol, preferably the dollar sign, in printing position in all ordersto the left of the highest significant figure.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will be obviousfrom the following particular description of one form of mechanismembodying the invention or from an inspection of the accompanyingdrawings; and the invention also constitutes certain new and novelfeatures of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forthand claimed.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a detail view of the essential elements of the printingmechanism of a tabulating machine.

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of the card feeding and analyzing devicesof the machine.

Fig. 3 is a view of the type head showing the arrangement of the severaltype elements.

Fig. 4 is a circuit diagram showing the manner in which the presentinvention may be applied.

Fig. 5 is a detail of a portion of a record card.

Fig. 6 is a view of a check upon which printing is to be effected undercontrol of the mechanism of the invention.

In the tabulating machine, record cards, such as H], (Fig. 5) are fedfrom a supply hopper (Fig.

2) to feed rollers II which convey the cards one at a time past a set ofupper analyzing brushes U13 and exactly one machine cycle later past a 5second set of lower analyzing brushes LB. As the cards move downwardlypast the brushes, perforations representing an amount or other data areanalyzed and circuits completed through these perforations, as the cardpasses the lower 1 brushes, will cause energization of print magnets I2(see Fig; 1).

Energization of a magnet l2 will rock its armature l3 counterclockwiseand through a rod I4 will rock a latch [5 in the same direction to trip15 stopping pawl I6 into engagement with one of the 'teeth I! integralwith type bar I8. The bar I8 is slidably mounted in verticallyreciprocating crosshead l9 and constrained to move upwardly therewith bymeans of spring-pressed arm 20 20.

which is pivoted at 2| to the crosshead. The upward movement ofcrosshead I9 is controlled through cam 22 and follower arm mechanism 23and the upward movement is timed so that the type elements 24 moveupward and pass printing 25 position of the platen 25 as thecorrespondingly numbered index point positions of the record card movein transit past the analyzing brushes LB. Analysis of a perforation, forexample in the '7 position, will cause completion of. a circuit to the30 magnet l2 at the '7. type element 24 is at the printing position andthe consequent tripping of stopping pawl l6 will prevent further upwardmovement of type. After the crosshead I9 has reached the upper limit ofits movement and the 35 several type bars have been differentiallylocated, the usual type hammers 26 are tripped and an impression istaken concurrently from the selected positions of the type bars.

For the purposes of the present invention, each 40 of the type barsisprovided with a type element 240. (Fig. 3) adapted to print the dollarsign and as the record card passes the lower brushes and before the 9index point position is analyzed, magnets l2 will receive an impulse inposi- 5 tions to the left of the highest significant figure therebycausing interruption of the type bars in such positions to present thesymbol to the platen.

The order in which the symbol is to be printed may best be explained inconnection with the circuit diagram (Fig. 4). The upper brushes areshown diagrammatically at U13 and they receive current from the rightside of line through a pair of cam controlled contacts 21. The lowerbrushes are indicated at LB and the common contact roller 29 thereforreceives current from the left side of line through a pair of camcontrolled contacts 38. Associated with each column of brushes is adifferential relay having a so-called pickup winding 35 and a holdingwinding 32. Each pickup winding terminates in a plug connection 33 whichmay be associated with upper brushes UB through a plug connection 34,and each of the pickup windings has connection with a common lead 35which extends through a pair of cam controlled contacts Contacts 35 aretimed to close momentarily as the zero index point position of therecord card passes the upper brushes U13, and in those positions inwhich a perforation is present, a circuit will be completed as follows:from left side of line, through cam contacts 35, wire 35, winding 3 iplug socket 33, connection 34, upper brush UB, zero perforation, commoncontact roller 28, contacts 27, to right side of line. Energization ofcoil 3! will cause closure of pair of contacts 37 to establish a holdingcircuit traceable from left side of line, common lead 38, winding 32,contacts 31, cam controlled contacts 39 to right side of line. Contacts39 are closed at this time and remain closed until the card is partlypast the lower brushes. In this manner, all differential relaysassociated with columns in which zero perforations are present will beenergized and held in such condition until the dollar sign type havebeen presented to printing position, after which contacts 38 open todrop the holding circuits.

Associated with each relay are normally open contacts to and normallyclosed contacts M which are adapted to shift so that contacts 40 closeand contacts il open whenever the related relay is energized in responseto a zero perforation. The contacts ii terminate in plug sockets 42which may be plug connected to the lower brushes LB as by plugconnections 53 and the contacts 4E3 terminate in plug sockets 44 which,through connections 45, may be associated with sockets 56 connected tothe printing magnets l2. In those positions in which no zero perforationis analyzed by the upper brushes, the contacts at, 4| will remain intheir normal position as shown so that as the card subsequently passesthe lower brushes, circuits will be completed in these positions atdifierential times, depending upon the location of the hole to energizethe print magnet l2 and interrupt the type bar to print from thecorresponding type element. These circuits are individually traceable asfollows: from left side of line, through cam contacts at which areadapted to be closed while the card is in contact with the brushes LB,common roller 29, perforation in the record card, brush LB, connection53, socket 42, contacts M, plug socket M, connection 45, socket it,print magnet H, to right side of line.

The contacts 40 of the highest denominational order are connected to apair of contacts 4?. These contacts are timed to close momentarily asthe type element 25a bearing the symbol approaches the printing positionand will send an impulse to the printing magnets 12 in all positions tothe left of the first significant figure. The manner in which this isbrought about may best be explained with reference to a particularexample.

Assume, for instance, that the card is perforated as in Fig. 5 torepresent the amount $305.75. In accordance with the usual practice, thecolin the zero position.

umns to the left of this amount are perforated As the card passes theupper brushes, the dollars field is analyzed by the five brushes UBshown in Fig. i and the differential relays in the first, second andfourth 5 positions from the left will be energized, causing closure oftheir corresponding contacts 40 and opening of their contacts 45, As thecard proceeds downwardly into contact with the lower brushes, camcontacts will close momentarily 10 and complete a circuit from left sideof line, through contacts 4i, contacts to in the first order, nowclosed, plug socket M, connection 45, socket and the first order printmagnet l2, to right side of line. Ene-rgization at this time 15 willinterrupt the type bar in the first order with the symbol at theprinting line. This circuit will also branch at contacts 45] andcontinue through the closed contacts so of the second order and thencethrough the second order print mag- 20 net 92. In the third order,however, contacts will be open and further circuits through contacts Mwill be interrupted at this point. As the card continues past the lowerbrushes, the type bar in the third order will be interrupted 25 at 3 andin the fifth order at 5. The positioning of the fourth order at zerowill be eifected in the well known manner under control of the adjacenttype bars.

In this manner, any or all of the positions in 30 which a money value isto be printed may receive the symbol. For example, if all the positionsin the dollars field were zero punched, the machine would automaticallyprint five symbols on the check or other record. 35

While there has been shown and described and pointed out the fundamentalnovel features of the invention as applied to a single modification, itwill be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changesin the form and de- 4 tails of the device illustrated and in itsoperation may be made. by those skilled in the art without departingfrom the spirit of the invention. It is the intention therefore to belimited only as indicated by the scope of the following 5 claims.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. In amachine of the class described, type bars, means fordiiferentially positioning said bars to print data representative ofnumerical 50 values, means for determining the position of the highestsignificant figure to be printed, and means controlled thereby forcausing the printing of a predetermined symbol in orders higher thanthat of the said significant figure. 55

2. In an accounting machine, an automatic printing device comprising aplurality of type carriers, record controlled means for causingdifierential positioning of said carriers to print an amount, means forpredetermining the location 60 of the highest order significant figureto be printed and means for causing independent positioning of carriersadjacent to said order.

3. In an accounting machine, means for analyzing a multi-columnar fieldof a record card for 5 perforations representing an amount and in whichthe columns of the field having no significant digit punching are zeropunched, means for prereading the zero punched positions, a set updevice controlled thereby, type carriers positioned 7 by said firstnamed analyzing means, and means controlled by said setup device forprinting symbols in positions to the left of the highest significantfigure.

4. In an accounting machine, means for pre- 75 reading perforations in arecord card representative of a number in which zeros may occur to theleft and/or right of a significant figure, settable means controlledthereby in accordance with the occurrence of zeros, a second analyzingmeans for analyzing only the significant digits of the number, typecarriers and means controlled by said settable means during theoperation of said second analyzing means for causing said type carriersto print symbols to the left of the highest significant figure equal innumber to the number of zeros to the left thereof on the card.

5. In an accounting machine, a pair of analyzing stations, means forcausing one of said stations to analyze zero index point positions of arecord card, and the other station to read significant figure indexpoint positions, type carriers, and means jointly controlled by saidstations for controlling said carriers to print the number sensed witharbitrary symbols substituted for zeros occurring to the left of thefirst significant figure.

6. In a machine of the class described, means for analyzing the columnsof a record card for digit representing perforations, a plurality oftype carriers equal in number to the columns analyzed,

the left of said highest significant digit position.

EDWARD J. RABENDA.

